


neptunian

by misleko



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Day At The Beach, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Road Trips, Slice of Life, Summer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:34:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24872383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misleko/pseuds/misleko
Summary: Yukhei and Renjun know Mark just wants to nap, but it's been a month since they've seen him and they need to make up for lost time.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Mark Lee/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas
Comments: 19
Kudos: 52
Collections: 姐妹 exchange!!





	neptunian

**Author's Note:**

> I got a sliver of inspiration and less than 36 hours later, here we are. first fic in the tag! I hope there will be more soon >< lumarkren best boys!
> 
> this one's for all my meimeis - all of you played a part in helping me come up with this fic + bang it out so quick, whether you knew it or not, so i'm grateful for jiemei club!! love you ♡
> 
> happy reading~

Yukhei stands in front of the freezers in deep contemplation. He doesn’t even flinch as a shopping cart rolls to a stop beside him, lightly bumping into his hip. “What’s Mark’s favorite ice cream flavor again?”

“Rocky Road. Non-dairy, don’t forget! Grab me a Mint Chocolate Chip too?”

Yukhei turns to fix Renjun with a deadpan stare but he’s already taking off down the aisle with a smile, one foot pushing off the floor so that he can glide on the cart. “See you at checkout! Love you!” 

Yukhei groans, already accepting the feeling of disappointment he’d inevitably get when he looks at his bank balance later. The freezer door shuts with a soft slam, a pint of ice cream in each hand. His boyfriends are lucky that they’re cute.

They pool their cash together at checkout, Yukhei slapping a pack of gum down on the conveyor belt at the last second. Renjun raises an eyebrow at him and he widens his eyes in defense.

“What? We haven’t seen Mark in a month. I want to be, you know,” he points at the label on the gum, “minty fresh.”

“You’ve been kissing me with that mouth, though? Are you saying that I don’t deserve minty fresh?” Renjun takes the receipt from their cashier with a smile, paying no mind to the confused look on her face.

He moves to let Yukhei walk forward with their cart, falling into step at his side as they head out the doors. “Hey, I got you your minty ice cream. I’ll just eat a bite of that before I kiss you, yeah?” Renjun just laughs and makes a silly face at him before he opens the car trunk.

The drive to Mark’s house is filled with loud laughter, the both of them singing at the top of their lungs to a mixtape Mark had burned for them last month, right before he’d left for camp. Finally, they’ll be seeing him again, and the songs they’ve had on repeat for the past few weeks seem to gain new life because of that. Where just a few days ago, they were groaning at the beginning notes of songs they’d particularly associated with Mark, skipping to tracks that didn’t make them miss him as much, now they happily turn up the volume. They get a few looks from the cars next to them as they cruise down the road, but neither of them could be bothered to care.

Renjun finally lowers the volume as they turn onto Mark’s street, considerate for his neighbors. Yukhei all but throws his seatbelt off as soon as he parks, perfectly parallel to the curb. “Who’s gonna bring the groceries inside? Not it!” he says in a rush, already slamming the car door shut and sprinting up the driveway.

He chuckles to himself at the indignant shout Renjun throws after him, bending down to feel around under the peony bush for Mark’s spare house key. His fingers clasp around cold metal as the car trunk shuts and footsteps crunch on gravel behind him.

He raises a finger to his lips at Renjun, wanting to surprise Mark. Nobody else should be home, as far as he knows. The driveway is empty except for them, and Taeyong shouldn’t be off work for the next few hours, at least. That’s what Donghyuck had told them when they’d called to check in at the auto shop, anyway.

The front door opens with a quiet creak, and they carefully slip off their shoes in the entranceway. Renjun stifles a laugh at Yukhei’s socks, puppies printed all over them. Yukhei casts a betrayed look towards him, but Renjun simply whispers, “cute,” as he slips past him to set the bags down on the kitchen counter. “Let me put the ice cream in the freezer, I’ll join you guys upstairs in a bit.”

Yukhei doesn’t hesitate, crossing the small distance between them to quickly smack a kiss on his cheek before inching towards the stairs. He takes careful steps, especially mindful not to stomp up them as he normally would. Mark’s bedroom door is ajar, but there’s no noise coming from inside.

He leans at an angle to get a look inside without alerting Mark that he was there, but it seems to be all for naught. Mark is laid flat on his stomach, limbs spread out all over his bed, cheek smushed into his pillow, absolutely knocked out. He looks adorable.

Yukhei can’t help but slide his phone out of his pocket to snap a quick photo, immediately sending it to Renjun. _Picture taken right before disaster struck (2020)_. He can hear the vibration of Renjun’s phone on the kitchen counter from where he stands, and his head jerks up to check on Mark, but the noise isn’t nearly loud enough to wake him up. Thankfully. A new message has popped up in the chat by the time he looks away.

_You’re not gonna let him sleep peacefully, are you?_

Renjun’s probably shaking his head in amusement downstairs. Always doubtful and sarcastic, Yukhei thinks, but not without reason. Yukhei sends one last message to him before he puts his phone away: _Duh_. It’s been a solid thirty days without Mark Lee, and while he loves Renjun very much, he couldn’t help but feel as if something was missing. Or rather, he and Renjun are one whole, he and Mark are another whole, and of course, Mark and Renjun are fine without him, but they’re happiest when they’re all together.

He knows that Mark and Renjun feel the same way. Mark’s twice-weekly phone calls were very much cherished, but nothing beats being together when all their focus could be on each other and they could spend their time wasting the day away in bed. That’s exactly what they had done when school let out, for about two weeks before Mark had to leave. Yukhei thinks it was a rather cruel punishment, to experience the peak of contentment and then have it all ripped away for a month.

Renjun had called him dramatic, but Yukhei knew he missed Mark just as much. Hell, their entire town probably knew by the amount of old photos Renjun uploaded on Instagram of the three of them in the past two weeks alone.

Donghyuck had commented on the last one, _damn, some of us are single, you know_. More interestingly enough, Jaemin had commented under that, _you don’t have to be_. Yukhei should really look into that situation, once he’s made up for a month of Mark cuddles.

He pushes the door open further, just enough for him to edge into the room. Mark’s suitcase lies open on the floor, a couple of shirts unfolded on top. It seems that Mark had gotten home, attempted to unpack, and gave up about a minute in. He didn’t even take his socks off before falling into a slumber. Yukhei smiles at that observation.

Carefully, he makes his way to the end of the bed, gazing upon a sight that he’s almost forgotten. Mark’s dark hair has gotten a little longer, strands falling over his forehead. It’s a little lighter than it had been when he’d left, a product of spending every day in the sun, Yukhei supposes. He’s tanner, too, and it looks good on him, a nice healthy glow spread over his skin. He looks...warm. And soft.

Yukhei decides to find out exactly how warm and soft he is, settling one knee on the bed to crawl over Mark’s body. He flops down gently on top of Mark’s back, head settling comfortably into the crook of his neck. He buries his nose into Mark’s hair. Very soft, just as he suspected.

Underneath him, Mark stirs. First, his shoulders come up, then his ankles roll, and he makes a very confused noise when he finds that he cannot exactly move. Yukhei chuckles, and it probably vibrates through Mark’s body. “Mmf—hei?”

“Hi, baby.”

Mark’s right forearm raises and flops back down in the next moment. He’s too sleepy to even move, still. Slowly, he regains his bearings. Yukhei can’t see from where he’s lying, but he imagines Mark’s eyes blinking open a few times until he can hold his consciousness for longer than a few seconds. Mark starts wiggling, movements more powerful now that he’s woken up fully. “Yukhei! Why are you! On top of me!”

Yukhei laughs loud, ignoring Mark’s noises of protest, and clings tighter. “Because I missed you, Mark Lee!” Another laugh joins them from the doorway. Renjun’s leaning against the doorframe, a cup of tea in hand and eyes wrinkled in joy at the sight.

Mark stops struggling to catch Renjun’s gaze. “Hi, Jun. A little help here?” Renjun hums, takes a sip of his tea, and pads over to them, feet clad in Mark’s lion face slippers. He sets the cup down on the bedside table, shakes his legs free of the slippers, and jumps on top of them both in the next moment.

“—Jun!” comes Mark’s cry from the bottom of the puppy pile.

“Hi, Mark, we’ve missed you!” Renjun cheerfully replies. Yukhei is lost in his laughter now, shoulders shaking and heart full. With Renjun on top of him and Mark under him, this is exactly where he’s meant to be.

Renjun rolls off after a while longer, not wanting to suffocate his boyfriends. Yukhei follows along, allowing Mark to sit up and breathe. Mark huffs, and rolls his neck, and cracks his knuckles, all the while glaring at them. Then, a devious grin spreads over his face and he tackles them both back down onto the bed, arms wrapping around their chests. “I’ve missed you both too. Couldn’t have let me sleep, though?”

Renjun makes an affronted noise. “Of course not! Summer’s a-wastin', Mark Lee, and we’ve got things to do.”

Yukhei uses the hand not trapped under Mark to pull lightly at his hair. “Renjun and I added about thirty more things to the bucket list while you were gone.”

“Uh huh, and how many did you complete?” Yukhei can’t see Renjun with Mark resting between them, but he knows in their head, they’re exchanging a sheepish look. “...Three. We just didn’t want to complete most of them without you! Most of them were your ideas anyway.”

Mark sits up onto his knees and offers his palms to pull them both up as well. “You know, the whole point of me making that bucket list was so that you two would have something to do while I was gone.” Renjun and Yukhei both fix him with an expression of innocence. Mark rubs a hand over his face. “But it’s very nice that you waited for me. Come here.” and he grabs both of their shirts to pull them in, laying a kiss on each of their mouths.

“Welcome back, Mark.”

—

“Are we still on for tomorrow?” Yukhei asks, with a spoon sticking out of his mouth. While he eats his large scoop of ice cream out of a bowl, Mark and Renjun sit on the kitchen counter eating straight out of their respective pints. Their legs dangle, occasionally intertwining with each other. Yukhei watches them fondly from where he sits at the kitchen table, chair pulled out, one knee raised for him to rest his bowl on.

Mark rolls his eyes. “Of course we’re still on for tomorrow, it’s all I could think about on the way home.”

Renjun laughs, digging his spoon a little deeper into his pint. “We just want to make sure you’re not too tired! If you are, we can push it back a few days, no biggie.”

“Well, maybe I wouldn’t be tired if you two had let me sleep,” Mark retorts, but his tone is teasing. He doesn’t mean it. “No, we’ve been planning this for a while. Let’s do it. Did you guys grab enough snacks and drinks at the store? Otherwise, I can go back later and—”

Renjun shuts him up with a spoonful of ice cream. “Don’t you worry your pretty little head, Mark, we’ve got it covered.” Yukhei nods in agreement, excitement flowing through his veins. The trio had been planning a mini road trip to the beach since before school had even let out, and now that Mark was back, they could finally put that plan into action.

Renjun hops off the counter and walks over to rinse his spoon in the sink. “Bao, bring me your bowl if you’re done.” Yukhei obediently rises to cross the kitchen, squeezing Mark’s arm lightly as he passes.

“Ah, you guys don’t have to do that, I’ll clean it up later.”

Yukhei shoots him an incredulous look. “Come on, babe, how long have you known us? Renjun,” he turns to him at the sink, “I think the sun’s gotten to his head. He’s lost his brain in the heat. What are we gonna do?”

Renjun plays into the act, shaking his head gravely. “We can only pray that his brain cells will return with the proper love and care. Patient Mark, we order you to go sleep it off.”

Mark simply sighs at their antics. “First, you wake me up, then you tell me to go back to sleep. Please,” he ambles away, rubbing his full stomach, “make up your minds! Also, someone come join me.”

Yukhei nudges Renjun. “Go. I got this!” Renjun’s eyes brighten, face leaning close to him to leave a peck on his shoulder. “Finish quickly and join us,” he whispers. And with that, he makes his way back to Mark’s room.

Yukhei hums to himself as he cleans the kitchen, wiping the counter free of excess water and putting the ice cream back in the freezer. Lazily, he saunters back up the stairs, towards his boys. 

When he reenters the bedroom, they’re both already settled in, Renjun wrapped around Mark’s back like a koala, Mark scrolling on his phone. He puts it down when Yukhei makes his way over to them, stepping over the suitcase again.

Yukhei drops onto the bed on Mark’s other side. Mark immediately tries his best to entangle their legs, taking care not to jostle Renjun too much. Yukhei maneuvers himself a little closer until he can tuck his head under Mark’s chin and throw an arm around his waist to rest his hand on Renjun’s hip.

A content hum rumbles out from his chest. This is their ideal cuddling position. Although Renjun likes to cling onto Mark, he usually prefers to be held by Yukhei, so he’s been sacrificing his little spoon rights for a while for Renjun’s sake. Like this, them all together with Mark in the middle, it feels a little bit like coming home. There’s something satisfying about being back in a familiar environment after a while. 

Overhead, Mark’s ceiling fan rotates, first in tandem with the rise and fall of Mark’s chest, then falling out of rhythm when Mark’s breathing slows as he drifts back into slumber. Renjun’s already started lightly snoring. Yukhei finds himself following his boyfriends soon enough, mind drifting off as he relaxes in Mark’s hold.

—

“—you they’d be here, I told you!”

“I didn’t disagree with your statement in the first place, why are you gloating!”

Hushed whispers pull Yukhei out of his hazy dream, although he stays suspended in a cocoon of warmth.

“Are you guys quite done yet?” A new voice enters the conversation, one extremely close to where Yukhei’s lying. He feels Mark pick his head up, careful not to disturb either boy lying against him. “Hi, what are you doing in my house? How’d you get in?”

A velvety voice that he now recognizes as Jaemin speaks up from somewhere behind him; he can’t be bothered to turn his head to look over his shoulder.

“Your spare key isn’t exactly well hidden, Markie. Maybe you should fix that. You never know what hooligans could try to break in.”

Donghyuck pipes up as well. “Yeah, Markie, God forbid that happens!”

Yukhei can perfectly visualize the disgruntled expression on Mark’s face, even if his own is still buried against Mark’s chest. So, he takes it upon himself to turn around, face their friends, and put on his very best puppy dog eyes. Hopefully, it works this time. Donghyuck usually gives in to him in a matter of seconds but Jaemin could hold on surprisingly long, most of the time.

Luck must be on Yukhei’s side this time around, because Jaemin explains rather quickly. “Chenle told us to come ‘round and haul your asses over for dinner.”

“Well, really, he only specified just the one ass,” Donghyuck mock whispers to Jaemin, hand hovering over his mouth in a false display of secrecy. “Let’s grab the one and ditch the other two.”

“Donghyuck, either you walk yourself out right now or I kick you out the window,” Renjun mutters from the other side of the bed. Yukhei looks over at him. His head is still resting against Mark’s back, eyes closed. Mark and Yukhei erupt into quiet laughter. Renjun is so cute when he’s annoyed.

Donghyuck and Jaemin don’t seem to be taking his threat seriously, by the unimpressed looks on their faces, but they turn to head out anyway. “We’ll see you at Chenle’s in thirty or we’re starting without you! He ordered all your favorites, Mark.” Mark makes a noise of assent and rolls over onto his back, dislodging a displeased Renjun.

“Hey, guys,” Mark starts slowly after they hear the front door shut, “if one of us gets picked for dish duty tonight,” because the condition of eating at Chenle’s was that some of them would be responsible for clean-up, “then last one out the door has to take their place!” He finishes in a rush.

With that, Mark breaks out of their hold and stands up on the bed, hopping over limbs to get to the ground. He scoops up some clothes from his suitcase and makes a run for the bathroom.

Renjun looks over at him. “Didn’t he just play himself? I’m good to go.” Yukhei looks down at his shirt. It’s a little wrinkled from their nap, so he gets up off the bed and grabs a shirt from Mark’s suitcase, pulling his own T-shirt over his shoulders. He looks back at Renjun after he’s changed to find the other looking unabashedly at him. “So am I. Let’s go wait in the car.”

With matching shit-eating grins, they run down the stairs. They can hear Mark groan in defeat from the bathroom as they pull their shoes on, breaking down into laughter in the foyer. Yukhei offers his hand for Renjun to take as they stroll outside, at a leisurely pace to flaunt their secured win. 

Yukhei starts the car to give the A/C a chance to kick in, leaving the car door open so he could sit sideways with his legs hanging out.

Mark comes out a few minutes later, head hung at his loss. “Forgot you guys were already dressed for the day,” he mutters, to their great amusement. He slides into the backseat, not even attempting to fight Renjun for the shotgun.

Before Yukhei can put the car in reverse and back out of the driveway, though, Mark pokes his head in between the two front seats. “Wait, I have something for you.” He passes a CD case over. “Think it’s about time for a new mix, yeah? Burned the CD as soon as I got home.”

Renjun whoops. “DJ Mark makes a comeback!”

“DJ Mark back at it again!” Yukhei bellows out in response.

Mark sits back in his seat, pleased at their reactions, hands coming up to push his hair behind his ears. As the first track plays, strong electric guitar blaring out the speakers, Yukhei makes his way down the street, Renjun bopping his head in his peripheral vision. When he chances a glance at Mark in the back, he spots him tapping his fingers to the beat and smiling at nothing out the window.

—

The door is pulled open almost immediately after they knock, Chenle’s beaming face greeting them all. “Mark, you’re back!” he cheers, going in for a big hug. Mark accepts it easily, probably already knowing that he’ll be subjected to a lot of affection tonight. “Come in, guys, everyone’s here already.”

Sure enough, the basement is filled with noise, Jeno in one corner shooting billiards with Yangyang, a small group crowded around the sofa watching Jaemin overtake Kunhang in Mario Kart. Heads turn towards the stairs as Chenle stomps down.

He stops at the bottom step, hindering the trio from coming into view. “Fellas, the King has returned!” He announces in a dramatic tone.

“Why am I not the king?” Yukhei bends at the knees to whisper to Renjun situated on the step below him.

“Don’t question it, you know how Chenle adores Mark,” he whispers back. Mark’s shoulders shake with silent laughter in front of them both. Renjun pushes at his back playfully. “Don’t let that get to your head, you goof.”

Mark turns back to look at them, reaching up to his face with his hand to physically tilt his upturned lips into a frown. Renjun rolls his eyes, his own hands coming up to turn Mark back to face the front.

Chenle steps out of the way for them to make their way down the rest of the stairs. A scattering of applause breaks out when Mark enters, a chant of “Mark! Mark! Mark!” starting up. Yukhei and Renjun almost lose their shit in the stairwell, finding the entire situation hilarious. Mark’s cheeks bloom bright red, hissing at them both to come down.

They traipse down the rest of the way, and the chants grow louder at the sight of them, switching to “Yukhei! Renjun! Yukhei! Renjun!” Yukhei plays it up for their friends, raising his palms in the air and doing a little dance to encourage them further.

Renjun steps in front of him and signals for them to silence as if he were conducting an orchestra. Satisfied with how their friends go along with the act, Renjun smiles. “Let’s eat, boys.”

They’re at the table grabbing pizza slices and fried chicken when a tall, lanky boy sidles up to Mark. “Hi, Mark, didn’t think I’d see you here.”

Mark almost drops his paper plate. “Jisung! What the hell are you doing here, wow!” He reaches up to ruffle Jisung’s hair, turning to face his boyfriends with an arm slung over Jisung’s shoulder. “Guys, this is Jisung. He was a junior counselor at camp,” he twists his head to look at him, “When you said you were moving, I didn’t think you meant here, man! Why didn’t you tell me? That’s wild.”

Jisung puffs his cheeks out, “You didn’t ask,” he states matter-of-factly. It makes them all laugh, Mark’s more sheepish but still good-natured.

Chenle walks up to them, inserting himself into the conversation. “Hey, how cool, you’ve all met Jisung! Isn’t he so funny? I met him at the mall just today.” How on brand of Chenle, Yukhei muses, to make friends in random places like the mall and immediately invite them over.

“Mark knows him from camp,” Renjun pipes up. “Hi, I’m Renjun,” he smiles warmly at Jisung. “Oh!” Jisung straightens up, “then you must be Yukhei?” Wide eyes meet his own. “Mark talked about you guys, like, all the time.” Mark makes a sound of mortification and turns back to the food, grabbing another piece of chicken.

“Oh, did he now,” Renjun almost purrs, completely smug. Chenle scoffs. “Are any of us surprised about that? Come on, Jisung, let me introduce you to Jaemin and Kunhang now that they’re done with their match.”

They’re left alone to surround Mark in a hug, teasing remarks already bubbling out of them. Mark just takes it all in stride, knowing that this was his inevitable fate after being gone for a month.

Eventually, Yukhei gets pulled away for billiards by Dejun, but he catches glimpses in between turns of Mark and Renjun curled up together on the couch as they converse with Donghyuck and that’s enough to satisfy his heart. They’re all back together again, and nothing is stopping them from spending the rest of the summer together. 

As the night winds down, Chenle announces that the deciding method of choice for who has to wash the dishes tonight is a best-out-of-three match of Super Smash Bros Brawl. Renjun, well known to be the worst of them all at it, looks towards Mark sweetly before they even start. “Sorry, baobao.” Mark flops back onto the couch in defeat.

Still, they all give a valiant effort, and when Renjun ends up in last place as expected, they’re kind enough to help clear the mess and wait for Mark to finish up in the kitchen as the rest of their friends head home.

—

It rained last night, evident by the petrichor staining the air, but the trio doesn’t let that fact bring them down. After all, Yukhei’s an optimist, Renjun’s a romantic, and Mark is happy if his boyfriends are. The weather’s nicer by the beach, Renjun assures them, eyes glued to his weather app. Above them, the sky is changing quickly, grey clouds rolling off into the horizon, giving way to clear blue and bright summer sun the further they drive.

Yukhei had traded cars with his dad for the weekend, giving up his Camaro (fresh paint job and everything, courtesy of discounts from Taeyong at the auto shop) for his dad’s larger pickup truck. It means they can all squeeze together in the same row of seats in the front, or cuddle together in the truck bed. Yukhei stashed a bunch of blankets in the back this morning, right before heading out to pick them up, for that very reason. He even dug out his mom’s old school boombox from the attic, texting them both to bring their favorite CDs.

He picks Mark up first, who climbs into the truck with round specs and a thermos bowl of cereal in hand, tuft of hair sticking straight up. Yukhei smiles to himself at the sight, leaving it be because, fuck, it’s really cute.

At a stoplight, Mark brings the bowl up to his mouth to sip at the milk. It leaves a mini milk mustache on his upper lip and Yukhei hesitates for only a second before leaning over to kiss it away, throwing all attention on the stoplight out the window. Mark exclaims in surprise at the sudden affection, but allows it happily, tilting his head to get a better angle. Yukhei only pulls away when a car honks behind them, turning back to the road seamlessly as if he hadn’t just kissed the daylights out of Mark.

“You had something right there,” Yukhei tosses into the air as if Mark was looking for an explanation. Mark hums and rests a hand on Yukhei’s thigh, not moving, just a comforting point of contact.

Renjun is already waiting outside his condo when Yukhei pulls up, standing up off the large cooler he was sitting on. As soon as Yukhei parks, he’s hopping out the truck to wind around and grab the cooler from Renjun.

“Bao, I got it,” Renjun murmurs in greeting, but Yukhei simply drops a kiss on his forehead and nods towards the truck. “Mark’s trying to put on trap music at eight in the morning; go stop him for me?” Renjun sighs and accepts his new task with a hand running down Yukhei’s bicep.

Spectacular execution once again, Yukhei, he praises himself in his head. Master strategist of diversion tactics. When he climbs back into the front, Frank Ocean is playing. Clearly, Renjun’s convinced Mark to switch the music.

If they were spies, Renjun would be a master of negotiation, he thinks. His persuasion skills are unmatched. He lets himself ponder on this subject a little longer, as he watches Renjun smooth down Mark’s hair. Mark would be...the all-rounder. Field agent for sure, high combat skills. A spy trio, wouldn’t that be fun.

He’s brought back to reality by a tug on his ear. “What’s on your mind, baby? Are you too tired to drive?” Yukhei shakes off the concern with a sweet grin. “No, I’m super well-rested. Was just thinking...if we were spies, what would we each specialize in?”

His question sets off an easy conversation, sprinkled with light banter, and teasing jabs in each other’s sides.

Eventually, skyscrapers and expressways give way to mountainside roads and a breathtaking panoramic view. Their truck booms with the heavy beat of a rap song, Mark absentmindedly mouthing along as he takes pictures of Renjun. “What are you taking pictures of me for, dork? The view’s on that side.” Yukhei flashes them both an award-winning smile, left arm lifting off the rolled down window it’d been leaning on to shoot them a finger gun of appreciation. “I was talking about the ocean, goof.” He pouts.

They’re about fifteen miles away from the beach when Renjun decides that he absolutely cannot hold his bladder for the rest of the way. Mark yawns and stretches his arms as much as he can in the cramped space. “Come on, Yukhei, let’s make a pit stop.”

It’s by all the luck in the world that they pass by a boardwalk in the next few minutes. Renjun yanks the seatbelt off and runs, feet flying down the sandy wooden planks towards the bathrooms.

Mark and Yukhei get out and stretch by the side of the truck. As he’s coming back up from attempting to touch his toes, he spots it. “Babe, look, a corn dog cart!” His voice raises a pitch in his excitement. 

Mark’s eyes follow his line of sight and he can’t quite suppress his exasperated smile. “Yukhei, we have so much food in the back.”

“But we’re at a boardwalk! And there are corn dogs! Boardwalk corn dogs, Mark!”

“Boardwalk Corndog, bad band name,” he automatically replies. It’s a game they have going on, trying to come up with the absolute worst band name possible. Months later, and no clear winner has arisen yet. Renjun is surprisingly intense about it. 

“Hey, no fair, I gave you that one!” Mark bats away the hands that rise up to grab at his waist with a laugh and starts walking towards the small, yellow cart, resigned. “Ketchup, no mustard, right?” Yukhei beams.

Renjun finds them a few minutes later, elbows leaning against the wooden railing, condiments smeared on their lips. “How are you both so messy,” he sighs. Mark licks his lips clean. “Messy where?” Yukhei follows suit. “Yeah, messy where?”

“Right,” Renjun turns to head back towards the truck, “I can’t believe I kiss you two. Do you guys wanna come back here later? Not much is open right now, but apparently, they have a nightly fire show or something.”

They flank him on either side, matching their walking pace. Yukhei bites his corn dog stick clean and makes a nice throw right into the trash can they pass. “I’m down for whatever.” Mark hums his agreement, chewing his last bite.

Their excitement is palpable as they start the truck up again, so close to their destination. Mark rolls down the passenger window, Renjun now sitting in the middle, and whoops at the chill breeze offsetting the midsummer heat. Renjun squeezes his eyes shut at his hair fluttering around from being caught in between two gusts of wind, but he doesn’t complain. What’s a road trip without feeling the fresh air in your lungs as you drive past, anyway?

It takes a solid minute to find a parking spot. Even though they’d chosen one of the more secluded beaches, it was expected that there’d still be a small crowd on any given sunny day. Renjun had been right; down by the ocean, it was nothing but cloudless skies.

Mark steps out first and offers his hand to help Renjun hop out too. Yukhei reaches into his glove compartment for sunglasses, pulling down the sun visor for a glance in the mirror. Standing at the back, Mark slaps a hand on the truck bed. “Yo, open up!”

While Renjun carries their towels and snacks, Yukhei and Mark each grab one end of the cooler.

They decide to set up camp by a large boulder on the right side of the beach. Mark and Yukhei end up getting distracted by climbing up the boulder to reenact Jack and Rose in the Titanic, ocean breeze whipping their clothes around. Renjun throws wrapped sandwiches at them, calling out for them to eat their late breakfast.

Sometime after midday, a girl runs up to them, pastel pink hair tied up high in a ponytail. “Hey, would you guys be interested in a game of volleyball? We need some more people.” Yukhei gives an easy shrug, looking towards Mark and Renjun. Why not, right?

They head over to the court, casual introductions given before they get into position. Yukhei’s sport of choice isn’t volleyball, choosing instead to spend his time throwing hoops, but he’s not too terrible. Mark is actually doing pretty well, and Renjun, wow, he did not know he could spike that hard.

He thinks it’s so cool, that he’s constantly discovering new things about his boyfriends. It’s like every time he thinks he couldn’t possibly love them more, they prove that the limit doesn’t exist. 

Their team wins the game and gets challenged to a rematch. “Let’s switch the teams around,” a boy on the opposite side of the net suggests. “You guys work too well together, we need to balance it out,” he jokes.

Mark gets recruited over, making Renjun shuffle next to Yukhei in the lineup. “Hi,” he murmurs, “long time no see.” The opposing side’s makeshift captain brings two fingers to her mouth and lets out a sharp whistle, and the game begins again.

It’s a close game, but in the end, Mark’s team wins with a well-aimed spike. Across the net, Mark jumps in the air, raising his arms high up and wiggling them around in a victory dance. 

Yukhei rolls his eyes fondly. “Good game,” he calls out to everyone. They all return his sentiment, water bottles in hand to cool down from the exercise.

Mark comes around the net, still dancing. He passes Yukhei a water bottle and takes a sip from his own, absolutely reveling in his victory. Renjun comes up behind him, light footsteps, and motion for Yukhei to stay quiet. From behind his back, he pulls out a water bottle with a squirt tip and aims for Mark’s back.

Mark yelps, whirling around, but Renjun’s already darted over to Yukhei, hiding behind him. They dash around him, leaving Yukhei wheezing by himself in laughter at their childish antics. 

Mark jerks his open water bottle forward, hoping to hit Renjun, but it splashes over Yukhei’s torso instead. It soaks through his white shirt, a large portion of the fabric turning transparent. On his abdomen, patches of black give a hint to the large tattoo hiding underneath.

“Oh,” Yukhei raises his head with a sparkle in his eyes, “you’re gonna get it.” he finishes, mouth widening into a toothy grin. Mark yells, “Oh, shit,” and drops his bottle, taking off towards the ocean.

Water comes up to splash at his thighs as he chases Mark through the shallow shores. He puts on a burst of speed, arm reaching out to wrap around his waist. “Gotcha,” he murmurs into Mark’s neck. Mark is too busy laughing to respond, allowing himself to be carried.

“Hey, losers!” Yukhei turns around, Mark still in his arms. Renjun stands at the edge of the shore, just at the highest point that the water reaches before receding into the ocean. “Come help me make a sandcastle,” he requests, a bucket in hand.

Mark taps a hand on Yukhei’s arm to let him go, and he drops back into the water on his feet with a small splash. “Wanna go bury him in the sand?” he asks in a low voice.

Yukhei mumbles back, “You already know it.”

They make their way back towards the sand, teal blue licking at their ankles. Once they all squat down on the ground, Yukhei shoots a mischievous look at Mark and grabs Renjun to pin him down at the shoulders.

“Wha—Yukhei!”

Mark cackles as he starts scooping up sand to pour on Renjun’s stomach. “Just sit back and relax, baby!” Renjun thrashes in their hold, turning his head towards Yukhei.

“Wait, no, you owe me! I’m cashing in that favor from last Christmas!”

Yukhei stills immediately, a groan rising. “Damn, fine.” He lets go of Renjun’s shoulders, ignoring Mark’s whines. Renjun sits up, brushes sand off his shirt, and tackles Mark down. “Let’s get him!” he hollers.

Yukhei bursts into giggles, immediately scooching over to hold Mark down now as Renjun turns the tables and drops sand on him. Mark screams in betrayal. “I trusted you!” he shoots at Yukhei. He leans down to drop a kiss on Mark’s downturned lips, “Sorry, but it had to be done.” 

“No hard feelings, baobao,” Renjun croons from where he’s packing sand up Mark’s legs. Mark lies back with a grumble, muttering about evil boyfriends. Once it looks like he’s accepted his fate, Yukhei lifts his hands off to join Renjun in making a mermaid out of Mark.

“You look beautiful, babe,” he compliments as Renjun drags fingers through his tail to add details. Mark stares up at the sky in defeat. “Thanks,” he deadpans. Renjun’s smile grows bigger.

Yukhei stands up as Renjun adds on finishing touches, grabbing the sunscreen spray from their bag to reapply a layer on his skin. He kneels to spray Mark’s chest too, lest his mermaid boyfriend burn. As he carefully sprays Mark’s face, Renjun waits patiently at the side with seashells to decorate.

In a matter of minutes, they stand up to appreciate their masterpiece. Yukhei can’t help but laugh as Renjun bends to take shots of Mark at different angles, Mark even giving in and posing for them. Yukhei supplies potential social media captions as Renjun carefully rearranges some shells. “‘There’s plenty of fish in the sea, and I have proof.’ Come on, Junnie, that’s gold.”

Mark pouts. “Are we done yet?” Yukhei pulls his phone out for a few quick snaps, then puts his hands in the air. “Okay, I’m good.”

“Same,” Renjun agrees. Mark pushes up on his elbows and with a little effort, busts his legs out of the sand.

“So long, mermaid prince,” Yukhei bids wistfully.

“Gone, but never forgotten.” Renjun murmurs. “Literally,” he waves his phone giddily.

They take several steps back as Mark stands up fully, clumps of wet sand falling down his legs. He takes one menacing step towards them and they run, in opposite directions up the beach, so drunk on laughter that they stumble in the hot sand.

With a sigh, Mark heads back towards the water instead, wading in to let the grit wash away from his body. Yukhei and Renjun meet back up at their blanket to watch him, plopping down under the beach umbrella they’d rented.

“It’s so hard to get off,” Mark screams, bent at the waist to rub down his calves. Renjun laughs. “Deserve!” Mark sticks his tongue out at them. Yukhei brings out popsicles from the cooler for them to enjoy as Mark provides them with entertainment.

“Hey,” Renjun speaks up after Yukhei closes the cooler. “I’m glad we finally made this happen.” He looks content, strawberry blond hair rustling lightly in the breeze. “I’m really lucky to have you both.” And God, Yukhei must have absorbed the sun right into his body because he feels a ball of fire build in his chest at Renjun’s words, putting a lump in his throat with the rush of emotions, with how much he cares for him.

He carefully sets his popsicle down on top of the wrapper, kissing up Renjun’s shoulder now his main priority. “I love you, angel.” Their lips meet, and Yukhei can feel the sun beating down on his face because Renjun had chosen to sit outside the shade of the umbrella, but he doesn’t care because kissing Renjun feels like a natural fucking phenomena. A fog creeps over his mind, magma flows through his veins, a tornado swirls in his lungs. And through it all, he’ll hold Renjun preciously, as if he was put here to take care of him.

“Did you want to go back to the boardwalk and catch that fire show?” He asks when they break apart. The sun is starting to drift down, painting the horizon with pretty shades of yellow and orange that’ll eventually fade to pink and purple. They have another while of sunshine left, but they should start packing up soon if they want to go back to the boardwalk.

Renjun shakes his head decidedly. “No, I like it here, just us.”

Mark runs back to them, feet kicking up sand. “Did you eat the last popsicle?” He asks, flopping down onto the blanket without a care for how soaked he was. Yukhei flinches at the cold drops of water that lands on his thighs.

“Yeah, sorry. You want a taste?” Mark’s eyebrows furrow. “How am I gonna taste it if you ate—” Renjun swoops down to capture his lips between his own, fingers combing through wet hair. 

Yukhei snorts at Renjun’s boldness, eyes wandering down the beach. Mark pulls away with a hum, “Raspberry, sweet. Yukhei, let me taste you too.” Yukhei’s eyes are trained down the stretch of sand, though.

“Look,” he says breathlessly, “there’s a bonfire down at that end of the beach!”

Turning their heads, Mark and Renjun blink in astonishment at the flume of fire rising high in the sky. Mark lets out a low whistle. “How did we miss that?”

“Come on,” Yukhei offers two hands to them, “let’s go check it out!”

They stand up and brush the sand off their shorts, checking to make sure their phones and wallets are with them. Everything else could be left behind for a bit, everyone seemed to be converging by the bonfire anyway.

The noise gets louder as they near, drums banging and people dancing. “Hey!” Mark squats down to talk to someone sitting on a cooler. “Mind if we join you guys?”

“Hell yeah, come sit! Jaehyun, get these guys a drink! What are y’all feeling? Beer, soda, root beer?”

“Root beer,” they all chorus. A handsome guy in an open Hawaiian shirt ambles up to them, three bottles of root beer in hand. “‘Sup guys, I’m Jaehyun. That’s my boyfriend, Johnny.”

Yukhei accepts the drink and the bro hug, “Hey, man. Nice to meet you. I’m Yukhei, and these are my boyfriends Mark and Renjun.”

Johnny nods at them. “Right on. Yo, any of you know how to play the guitar? Yuta’s been hammering at that drum for ages but he’s way too drunk to catch a rhythm.”

Yukhei turns expectantly towards Mark, who swallows down his root beer with a smile. “Yeah, fuck it, let’s jam.”

Yukhei settles down in the sand, pulling Renjun to sit in between his legs, back leaning against his chest. Mark gets pulled to a spot near the center, by the fire, and he takes the sudden attention in stride, settling one foot up on a milk crate to rest the guitar on his leg. He strums a couple of times, adjusts the tuning keys, and clears his throat. “Anyway, here’s Wonderwall.”

The small crowd erupts into noise, cheers mixing with fake boo’s until Mark flaps a hand at them to settle down. “Actually, I’ll play an old favorite of mine.” Soft chords ring out, and the group quiets a fair amount to listen.

Yukhei recognizes this song immediately. It was on the very first mixtape Mark had made for them, right when they first started dating. At the chorus, Renjun joins in, voice combining beautifully with Mark’s. He pulls at Yukhei’s hand to signal him to join in, too, and soon, others in the audience that know the song add in their voices as well.

Cries of, “Encore!” spring up as soon as Mark strums the final chords, and he blushes. He looks towards Yukhei and Renjun, and they give him encouraging nods to keep going. He plays two more songs before begging off, handing the guitar back to Johnny with a, “I’ve gotta get back to my boys.” Johnny accepts the guitar back graciously, telling them to stick around because Doyoung’s about to start grilling hot dogs. 

Mark comes back to them, first kneeling, then turning around to lay his head on Renjun’s lap with his legs spread out in front of them. “That was great, Mark,” Renjun reaches over to grab at Mark’s hand, “I haven’t seen you perform in front of a crowd in a while.” Usually, Mark just played for them, occasionally for their friends at small hangouts.

Mark lets out a noncommittal noise, rubbing his cheek against Renjun’s thigh. “The counselors put me in charge of the campfire sing-alongs,” he admits. As one, Yukhei and Renjun start cooing at him.

Mark raises an arm to cover his face in mild embarrassment, but Renjun knocks it down, cupping his cheek instead. “That’s actually precious.” The trio simmers down to a comfortable silence, content to watch the fire flicker and their new friends move around them.

“So this is one thing off the bucket list, huh?” Mark speaks up eventually, around a bite of a cheeseburger. The sun has fully set by now, constellations coming out to play.

Renjun groans. “One thing out of over forty.” Yukhei searches for Renjun’s hand, interlacing their fingers together. Mark moves to rest his legs on top of Yukhei’s lap, and they tangle together like a string of fate, coming together like magnets.

“It’s okay. We have the whole summer.”

“And more,” Mark adds on. They’d both decided to go to community college for a year, get their gen eds done for cheaper, and figure it all out from there. They’ll be in town for a while longer yet, only a few blocks from each other.

“And more,” Renjun repeats, voice reverent under the infinite expansion of stars.

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter](https://twitter.com/prive_bbh) \+ [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/bolobao)


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